Lenovo unveils three 10.1-in. tablets, two running Android

Prices start at $499 for Wi-Fi versions, which can be ordered today

Lenovo today announced a family of three 10.1-in. tablet computers, including two that run Android 3.1 and one that runs Windows 7.

The Lenovo IdeaPad Tablet K1 is expected to be available in the U.S. in August.

The two Android machines are dubbed the IdeaPad Tablet K1 for consumers and the ThinkPad Tablet for business users, Lenovo said.

The 32GB version of the K1 with Wi-Fi can be ordered starting today online and at some stores for $499, but won't be generally available in the U.S. until sometime in August. Availability will follow later for the rest of the world, Lenovo said.

The 16GB ThinkPad Tablet with Wi-Fi sells for $479 or for $509 with an optional digitizer touch pen. The ThinkPad will also be available for order today and generally available in the U.S. next month. A 3G wireless version will be available "at a later date," Lenovo said.

The Windows-based tablet, dubbed the IdeaPad Tablet P1, also uses Wi-Fi and will be available in the fourth quarter. Pricing has not been announced.

Lui Jun, a senior vice president of the Mobile Internet Digital Home business group at Lenovo, said the the family of tablets has "something for everyone."

The Android tablets are certified to play Netflix movies. All three tablets have 1280-by-800-pixel resolution.

The K1 and ThinkPad tablets feature Nvidia Tegra 2 dual-core processors with built-in Flash, while the P1 will run an Intel 1.5GHz chip. That combo appears to continue the Windows-Intel alliance for desktops and laptops.

Both the K1 and ThinkPad will weigh about 1.65 pounds, with the P1 slightly heavier at 1.75 pounds. The P1 has the same screen size as the other two, but the device itself is slightly larger.

One of the biggest differences in the devices is battery life. The consumer-focused K1 will last up to 10 hours with a two-cell battery; the business-oriented ThinkPad gets up to 8 hours, according to a Lenovo spec sheet. The P1 has the shortest battery life, with up to six hours using two battery cells.

Lenovo executives said they talked to 100 business customers in designing the ThinkPad, which comes with an optional keyboard portfolio carrying case for $99 as well as the optional pressure-sensitive pen.

Included with the ThinkPad is 2GB of free cloud storage, a standard USB port and an SD card reader. Presentations can be viewed through an external monitor connected to the ThinkPad's mini-HDMI port. Dual HD cameras provide video conferencing over apps including ooVoo.

SD card encryption, anti-theft software and the ability to disable a lost device are provided as well. Lenovo also offers ThinkPlus Support for access to technicians with Android experience.

Matt Hamblen covers mobile and wireless, smartphones and other handhelds, and wireless networking for Computerworld. Follow Matt on Twitter at @matthamblen or subscribe to Matt's RSS feed . His e-mail address is [email protected] .